1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to personal care appliances, such as a power skin care brush, that are used to care for, clean and otherwise treat skin and hair, and, in particular, to a portable, electrically driven, handheld device that may he used to care for, clean and otherwise treat skin and hair.
2. Description of the Related Art
Handheld personal care appliances used to care for, clean or otherwise treat the skin or hair (e.g., to clean, massage and/or apply creams, cleansing solutions or other substances to the skin or hair) are known and have gained increasing popularity. Such devices are most often used to provide daily hygienic skin care, in particular care for the facial skin. These devices usually include a small handheld casing having an internal motor and a self-contained power source (such as a battery) for producing a particular movement/action of a workpiece (e.g., a brush or pad), which in turn produces desired functional results. Examples of such appliances include power skin brushes and power toothbrushes, among others. Such personal care appliances have motor arrangements which produce either rotational movement or oscillating (back and forth) movement.
While many such devices are known, there is room for improvement in the field of personal care appliances such as handheld skin and hair treatment devices. Hence, it is desirable to have a personal care appliance having a drive assembly which is powerful (stronger and faster), energy efficient, quiet and durable. It would also be further desirable to according to an aspect of the present invention described herein, incorporate into the workpiece during the manufacturing stage active ingredients that are safe for use on the skin and resist and inhibit the growth of mold, mildew, fungus and/or bacteria on the workpiece keeping the workpiece cleaner and healthier for a longer period of time. By helping prevent the growth of microorganisms, stain and odor control is also achieved.